Ambient Computing & Devices
- Any use case that doesn’t land on the pinnacle of current tech—watching sports, gaming, whatever—probably isn’t going to happen ever.
- With AirPods and the Watch, Apple is already an augmented reality company, just not in a glasses form factor.
Some thoughts on the Vision Pro from Benedict Evans:
The Future: Consumer Computing
OpenAI announced ChatGPT Multimodal.
I heard the news through a rather breathless podcast about the drop and was trying to find my way out of the hype machine, but I think this is actually a big deal.
Previous AI tools were really just supercharged versions of existing tech options. ChatGPT was autocomplete on steroids. DALL-E was reverse image recognition. AR filters were Hipstamatic 2.0.
But this new GPT4 feature is something more.
It's a new way for users to interact with computing devices in ways more natural to the history of human experience and development.
Here's one of the examples from the announcement:
If I were to ask someone to help me face-to-face, I would point out the bike and ask (just like the demo). I wouldn't give them the specific bike make and model as a preface to my question.
When I'm trying to get a question answered, I'm looking for an answer. I'm not specifically looking for a list of links to click about or a YouTube video to scrub through or a PDF to scroll through.
This is the closest analog of human-to-human information seeking interaction I've seen from tech outside of limited voice assistant stuff.
We're moving closer to ambient computing—when the screen gets deemphasized and devices act more as extensions of your person than external boxes you tap at. AirPods, smart watches, and voice assistant devices are the forerunners of this trend. Multimodal is a power up.
If true AR glasses are feasible (big "if" on the technical hardware end of things right now), think about not even needing to take a picture for that bike example. Simply look at your bike and ask for help lowering the seat and get instructions overlaid on your field of vision.
We as marketers need to start thinking through how we can best serve customers through experiences like this in the future. And how our methods of distribution and promotion will change.
2020 Tech and Marketing Trends Distilled
It’s a new year, a new decade(?), so you know what that means: it’s trend time! We dusted off our crystal ball (not to be confused with our Cristal Ball) and took a peek at the future of marketing. Here’s what we saw (actual footage above).
Techlash: The Fallout
It’s been a rough time for platforms, fire hose marketers, and data vacuums lately. Enough scandals have piled up that users seem legitimately interested in their privacy and data security. A mix of regulations, technical changes at the browser level, and ad blocker use is going to make it more difficult to track users around the web and will shake up the current status quo.
How should you adapt? Provide value and service via your marketing. It’s about messaging transparently, having people opt in to your movement, and providing value to them through content. Or, it’s the opposite of spam. Treat your marketing and messaging as an invitation, not an offer they can’t refuse.
These changes, in tandem with some device trends, could mean it’s time to start thinking beyond the screens. Eyeballs are so 2010s.
The Robots Cometh
What will replace our love affair with screens? Robots! (we are contractually obligated to mention robots at least once per quarter)
Improvements in voice assistants and chatbots, machine learning capabilities (especially on consumer devices), and devices like smartwatches and headphones becoming increasingly robust could lead to a shift from screens to a more ambient form of technology. Like Radio 2.0: now with screens too!
In the more immediate future, we should have a growing number of toys that utilize machine intelligence to give us more ways to automate different tasks, both internally and externally.
Venture into the Dark Forests
Another trend arising from the shine fading from social media and similar algorithms? The growth of “dark forests”. Sounds ominous, right? It’s not, it’s just a fancy term for mediums like email newsletters, podcasts, private groups, and other non-broadcast messaging platforms. People increasingly want the information they’re interested in waiting for them when they’re ready versus bombarding them, and usually without a comment stream of sadness attached. They want community, not trolls with megaphones.
Does this mean social media is dead? No, but it is changing. Or at least we need to change our approach to it, especially as organic reach continues to decline. Approach these as focused content and story platforms more than broader social connecting.
Fly Your Flag
You know what is in your control? Your brand, story, and the content you create. Yes, your brand and story can change and transform once they hit the public domain, but it is still your brand. Tools and tactics change over time but the strength of content and stories endures. Craft your anthem and build a storytelling platform around it, with a focus on the channels you own.
Own the Moment
Gone are the days of the monoculture and the cultural moment. That one thing we all watch or hear. Our approach to marketing needs to reflect this reality. Customers move through a series of micro-moments in which we can message them, small windows of opportunity to catch their attention. These moments typically occur as they’re exploring on mobile, avoiding ads, in control, and expect to be able to act with the touch of a button. You have to utilize the other trends above to craft and deliver messaging that fit these moments and start a conversation.
Trends 2020 Distilled: Respect your customers. Own your channels. Tell your story.
What do you think we should expect in the future?
originally posted on the Blue Ion blog
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